Two Plays From The Giants-Redskins Game That Show You The Secret To Robert Griffin III's Success

Robert Griffin III is succeeding as a rookie by doing the same
things he did in college.

Rather than shoehorning him into a traditional offense and
minimizing the things he does well, Washington had adapted its
offense to fit what he's good at and (more importantly in the
short term) what he's familiar with. It's really smart.

This play went nowhere, but it gives you a general idea of what
Washington is doing. In the college game, they call this
formation the "pistol." It gives the offense a variety of running
options, and is designed to confuse the defense into playing on
their back foot.

The Redskins run a bootleg out of it — a play that's been around
in the NFL since, like, the '50s — but the goofy
formation and motion of the play holds the Giants lineman and
linebackers in place for a beat, and lets RG3 get out in space
where he is at his best.

Again, nothing was open, and the play fell flat. But the
objective is to get RG3 in the position to use his legs and his
arm, and it succeeded on that front.

Fox

The very next play, Washington got a touchdown, again on a play
that college fans will be very familiar with.

The WR bubble screen has become the new go-to play in college
football. Instead of simply running the ball up the middle for
three boring yards, teams now throw low-risk passes to their
receivers on the perimeter, and hope they can break a tackle or
two.

It's a simple play and throw that RG3 ran a million times at
Baylor. This one is a little more sophisticated — the running
back is the lead blocker, which is awesome — but it's still the
same thing.

Rookie QBs are typically called on to make the same difficult,
"NFL Throws!" that Tom Brady and Peyton Manning make. The Redskins are more
interested in if something works than if it qualifies as "NFL
level."

Fox

So if you want a quick explanation of why RG3 is having a great
year, look no further than these two plays.